Video—Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement overshadowed by disagreements over fisheries and housing

Video Transcript

In our audit of the implementation of the Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement, we found that the federal government’s progress in implementing some of its obligations under this Agreementhas been overshadowed by disagreements over fisheries and housing.

While we found that Parks Canada has managed the Torngat Mountains National Park to provide employment and business opportunities to Labrador Inuit, we also found that progress has been overshadowed by the inability to find a way to resolve longstanding disagreements over the interpretation of the obligations of the Agreement.

For example, Fisheries and Oceans Canada and the Nunatsiavut Government disagree over the share of the northern shrimp fishery that the Nunatsiavut Government is entitled to receive under the Agreement.

The dispute resolution mechanism contained in the Land Claims Agreement has not been used to help resolve disagreements.

Furthermore, the lack of a federal program for Inuit housing has limited Nunatsiavut Government’s ability to fulfill its housing responsibilities.

The failure to resolve differences puts a strain on the relationship between the federal government and the Nunatsiavut Government.

The results of this audit should be considered by the new Deputy Minister’s Oversight Committee on Modern Treaty Implementation, announced in the summer of 2015.